Robert Lieblich    671310 Sat, 27 Sep 03 04:31 AM "Moreso? Is that Spanish?" "Is this not an actual word? Wow...I can't seem to find it in dictionaries! How odd! I've been using this ... and "more-so" are offered as suggestions. But, if you click on either, NO ENTRY comes up! How odd is this?" Check out . I got to this via , which I find more useful than dictionary.com. Bob Lieblich I do this alot. Alright? Robert Lieblich Languages

	Dena Jo     671402 Sat, 27 Sep 03 05:56 AM "didn't occur to me. I admit your idea has merit, and thus, I may have been less than dashing. Do you still love me?" But of course! You could never be less than dashing to me. Dena Jo (Email: Replace TPUBGTH with denajo2) Dena Jo

	Dena Jo     671405 Sat, 27 Sep 03 05:59 AM "And, it has to be "tenga", not "tiene", because it's conditional, right?" I think tenga is the subjunctive. Dena Jo, whose last course in Spanish was in 1976 (Email: Replace TPUBGTH with denajo2) Dena Jo Conditionals, Subjunctives, Languages

	R J Valentine    671451 Sat, 27 Sep 03 06:26 AM }> Dena Jo: } }>> I think I might have punctuated that like so: "Well if they are }>> courteous." }>> }>> I initially read the "well" as a throwaway "well," }> }> Good call. I figured Skitt had made some sort of typo. It wasn't }> until reading your post, Dena, that I realized what he'd meant. And, }> no, it wasn't your "Well if..." that helped. It was your }> discussing the actual punctuation that tipped me off that I had }> probably misread it. And, then, I went directly back to Skitt's post }> and reread that sentence, and finally got it. }> }> Sure enough, I read both Skitt AND your version of the "well" as }> throwaways. I'd do it: "Well. If they are courteous", or probably }> even "They're treated well. If...", just to make it perfectly clear. }> Even as two separate sentences, the "well" could be misread as }> throwaway, probably. } } Fair catch. Read my answer to DJ for *my* thoughts. There's more than one } way to look at it. I'm not so sure of that. I read your response to the thread starter, skipped Dena Jo's (figuring that Young Joey would quote enough of it), and was AMAZED at Young Joey's perceptiveness (in English usage). I, too, read it as a throw-away "well" and assumed you just drifted off at the end as a subtle hint to recent posters. R. J. Valentine R J Valentine Sentences, Countries, United Kingdom, Great Britain, Usages, Writing, Punctuation, Languages, Tips

	Dena Jo     671452 Sat, 27 Sep 03 06:30 AM "I'm not so sure of that. I read your response to the thread starter, skipped Dena Jo's (figuring that Young Joey would quote enough of it)" Yeah. Right. Admit it. You find me boring. I'll have to do better. Dena Jo (Email: Replace TPUBGTH with denajo2) Dena Jo

	Evan Kirshenbaum    671459 Sat, 27 Sep 03 06:36 AM "It's short for "Ojalá que...", which comes from the Arabic "may Allah grant"." Why did that never dawn on me? Actually, looking at the DRAE, you're off a little. They say it's "law Sa llah", "if God wills" ("si Dios quiere"). Are there other Muslim religious references in everyday Spanish? Evan Kirshenbaum + HP Laboratories >The skinny models whose main job is 1501 Page Mill Road, 1U, MS 1141 >to display clothes aren't hired forPalo Alto, CA 94304 >their sex appeal. They're hired (650)857-7572 > Peter Moylan http://www.kirshenbaum.net/ Evan Kirshenbaum Business, References, Career, Languages

	Skitt    671455 Sat, 27 Sep 03 06:38 AM "}> Dena Jo: }>> I think I might have punctuated that like so: "Well if they }>> are courteous." ... as a throw-away "well" and assumed you just drifted off at the end as a subtle hint to recent posters." I may drift off at times, but that was not the case there. OK, my punctuation was faulty. I hate it when that happens, but punctuating is not my strong point, what with there being no set rules, and such, in English. Now, in Latvian or German that's a different story! Skitt (in Hayward, California) www.geocities.com/opus731/ Skitt Countries, United Kingdom, Great Britain, United States, Writing, Punctuation, Languages, Tips

	Javi    671479 Sat, 27 Sep 03 07:55 AM The carbon unit using the name Dena Jo in "Well, if they are courteous." "I think I might have punctuated that like so: "Well if they are courteous." I initially read the "well" ... go back and read it again. I'd be interested to hear if anyone else had the same problem with it." I had, but English is not my mother tongue. I think that a period (full stop) or a semicolon would have made clear what Skitt meant. I believe that I would had written it enclosing the if clause in brackets. "It could be that I've simply grown so accustomed to reading verbatim deposition transcripts, where every other sentence begins with a throwaway (well, now, etc.) that it's difficult for me to read it any other way."  Saludos cordiales Javi Conjunction of an irregular verb: I am firm. You are obstinate. He is a pig-headed fool. Javi Clauses, Sentences, Countries, United Kingdom, Great Britain, Writing, Punctuation, Languages, Semicolons

	Javi    671502 Sat, 27 Sep 03 09:02 AM "Skitt:" "You've studied it for five years, and your Spanish is still God-awful, as you say?" "This was three years ago. I stopped studying it three years ago. I'm sure I was better then than I ... have all the tenses right. I have a so-so vocabulary. We'll see what happens. But I THINK it's pretty crappy." No, it is not crappy at all. I had expected it much worse after reading your doubts about posting to AUS. I could understand all your message in AUS. You express yourself quite well in Spanish. You seem to have forgotten some things, specially verbal conjugation, but your vocabulary is good and your sintax is very good, you use subordinate clauses almost perfectly, though you have to learn the usage of the subjunctive and of "ser/estar". Probably the fact that you have studied Italian is helping you, as both languages are similar, and their sintaxes are almost indentical. It is not exactly the same, but I believe that it is a good way. Don't forget that Spanish is a language that is written almost as it is pronounced, so you have a lot less work to do than if you were learning other languages.  Saludos cordiales Javi Conjunction of an irregular verb: I am firm. You are obstinate. He is a pig-headed fool. Javi Tenses, Clauses, Vocabulary, Subjunctives, Usages, Writing, Languages